morning, and just now she slipped my feather boa off my neck and was going to make off with it. I ’ve no doubt she ’s a shoplifter. You 'd better search her.
Fortunately, Lucy had no idea what these words meant. She only stared bewildered at the man.
“Were you trying to steal this lady’s boa?” the man asked.
Then Lucy burst into tears. “I just picked it up off the floor,” she wailed; “the lady dropped it.”
“Where did you get that hat and coat?” asked the man, sternly.
But Lucy did not hear him—she was sobbing too loudly. One of the smaller doors clicked behind them.
“What ’s this disturbance, Mr. Jones?” asked a crisp, quick voice. “I can’t have this here. Step into the office. Now what’s the matter?”
Lucy found herself in a small room, with the lady of the feather boa on one side, and a man behind and before.
“Oh, it’s nothing of any consequence, Mr. Saunders; I should n’t carry it any further, only, of course, I thought your people ought to know if there were shoplifters about.”
“Oh, Miss Trenton, I beg pardon—I didn’t recognize you, Is it this child? Did she take anything of yours?”
“Well, not exactly, because I caught her. But she has been following me ever since I came in the store, and she was making off with my feather boa—”
“I picked it up!” wailed Lucy. “It dropped on the floor. When I was going to give it to her, she just snatched it out of my hands.”
“Please be seated.” Mr, Saunders sat down himself and drew Lucy toward him “Now listen to me, little girl. Nobody is going to hurt you, but you must n’t cry, for I want you to tell me everything you have been doing since you came downtown with your father.”
As Lucy winked away her tears and looked up at him, she recognized a gentleman she had seen seated opposite to her father in the car that morning. She fixed her round, moist eyes on his face, and something she saw there gave her courage to begin in a weak little voice:
“My father came to buy me a coat, because mama was sick, and she liked a brown one, but we had to buy a blue one that was six and a half because the lady said it’s a stylish color. And when he ’d paid fifty cents for my tam-o’-shanter he had to go down to the store to get some more money, because that makes seven dollars and it was all he had. So I was waiting, and this—lady—”her chin quivered before she went on—“went by, so I thought I ’d go shopping with her, because she bought such pretty things and we— She bought lots, Then, when I was going back to the candy counter to meet papa, her feathers fell off, and—and I was going to give it to her— but here the little voice failed.
“I am afraid, Miss Trenton, we owe an apology to this little girl,” said Mr. Saunders, quietly.
“I ’m sure I hope so.” Miss Trenton rose, torn between the desire not to offend Mr. Saunders and the hope of maintaining her own dignity. She smiled in a superior way on Lucy. “I ’m sorry I hurt your feelings, little girl. Good-by.” ‘She extended her slim, gloved hand to Lucy. Ten minutes ago it would have been bliss to feel its smoothness; now Lucy would as soon have touched a red-hot stove. She retreated behind Mr. Saunders as Mr. Jones opened the door for the lady.
Mr. Saunders smiled. “Oh, yes, it ’s all right, Miss Trenton. I ’m sorry we gave the child such a fright.” He did not seem to see the hand which Lucy had rejected, as he bowed the lady out. “You may go, Mr. Jones,” he said, nodding to the salesman.
“Now we must go and meet your father,” said Mr. Saunders to Lucy, “and he must n’t know you ’ve been crying.” Lucy was struggling to wipe her eyes with her handkerchief; but her coat-sleeve was so long that it got into her eyes instead. She looked up at him with a quivering smile. He took off his glasses and began to polish them.
“Do you like that coat?” he asked abruptly, but in so friendly a way that Lucy felt she could trust in him, and was no longer afraid.
“No, sir, not very well; but they all say it will last a long time. Mama wanted a brown one with a cape, but it was ten dollars. Do you
think she ‘ll be disappointed?— and it ’s very long.” She opened it in front and showed her